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“They thought I was hot,” Hays admitted, his voice tinged with embarrassment.
Jagger smiled. Women went nuts over Hays’s handsome face, tough body, and the almost shyness he had about him. They could probably sense how deep-down kind and good his best friend was. Hays was the perfect contrast to Jagger.
“Nice,” he said. “Those good looks of yours finally benefit us.”
Hays laughed. “Also, the backpacks the girls had on were the same black Cotopaxi backpacks Paul and Belinda had on.”
Cotopaxi backpacks were common, especially with female hikers, but usually they preferred the brightly colored bags.
Jagger turned on his wipers. The drizzle was annoying, but not a downpour at least.
“Hey, man.” Jagger cleared his throat, knowing he was wrong to ask this. “You okay if I head after them alone? You keep searching the rest of the island. They could be throwing us off with a plant.”
“For sure they could, but I’m already heading up that first mile of incline.”
“I … well, I really want to be the one to find her. I mean, them.”
Jagger knew it wasn’t a smart move. His friend was every bit as fit as him and could catch them easier if he was already on their trail. Was it just Jagger’s pride, or was it his longing for Belinda that he’d tried to bury the past couple days? No, he’d tried to bury that longing for the past fourteen years.
“Please,” he added.
“Um … sure, Jag. You catch them if they came this way, and if not, I’ll find them somewhere on the island. It’s a great plan. You’ll be the one sleeping on the ground tonight.”
Jagger laughed. What did either of them care about sleeping on the ground? They’d done it plenty. He sobered. “Thanks, man. Talk soon.” He hung up.
Parking his Jeep in the crowded Ha’ena State Park parking lot, he grabbed the backpack and shoved some more water bottles, jerky, and protein bars in. If they weren’t here, he would be in for a very miserable night. He was in for a miserable night either way, but being close to Belinda could make it less miserable. Or more miserable if she continued to call him a liar and give him dagger glares.
Jogging to the trailhead, he skirted around roosters and children and started up the steep incline. The first two miles took a multitude of tourists to Hanakapi’ai Beach. Some turned around there. Most people headed inland at that point, two miles up to Hanakapi’ai Waterfall. He and Hays had done that hike. The powerful waterfall and scenery were incredible. He’d thought of taking Belinda up there if they caught them early one of these days. Apparently, she and Paul had other plans.
Once a hiker passed Hanakapi’ai Beach, he needed a permit to hike the Na Pali Coast the nine additional demanding miles to Kalalau Beach. Hopefully Jagger didn’t run into an authority who wanted to see his permit. Maybe he’d get lucky and someone else would be discouraged by the rain and he could buy their backpack and permit off them.
He had to dodge around a lot of slow-moving tourists. Most were coming back down the trail, moving slowly through the slick mud, while Jagger was racing up the path like he was in a mud-run competition. This steep incline might be considered a tough climb and dangerous to some, but he’d traversed much worse wearing full battle gear and on alert to be exposed or attacked at any time. This was a piece of cake, and his Merrill hiking shoes gave him good grip as he ran.
“Hey.” Hays was just ahead. They stopped as they reached each other. “Do you need any of these supplies?” Hays started swinging off his backpack.
“I think I’ll be good. I’ve got water, some food, a satellite phone, and some weapons. Let me know if you hear anything or find them.”
“For sure.” Hays gave him a quick hug. “Godspeed. I’ll be praying for you.”
“Thanks, man.” Jagger didn’t say a lot about his aversion to heaven’s intervention, but Hays knew it was strong. Occasionally Hays, Mercedes, or Julie prayed for him or blessed him. It was fine. With anybody else, Jagger would probably flare up, but Hays was far too patient with him and loyal to him and the ladies were far too sweet, when they weren’t scheming. Shawn was a believer but he’d never said much about it to Jagger.
Right now, Jagger could use some heavenly speed and prayers. He didn’t know why he felt such a strong urge to get to Belinda, but it was as strong as any feeling he’d had throughout his career. Was heaven breaking their armistice and giving him some direction?
“See you soon.” He saluted his friend and took off at a run.
Reaching the top, he raced down the next mile the best he could. He slipped and caught himself a few times on trees, bushes, or roots. He got cursed at more than he slipped for startling people or racing around them. That made him smile as he murmured, ‘excuse me,’ to every group he passed. There hadn’t been much to smile about the past two days.
He crossed the stream, noticed it was running high with the rain, and made it to Hanakapi’ai Beach. There were a lot of boulders, cairns, and some children playing at the edge of the stream. Thankfully, nobody was in the ocean. For anyone with less swimming prowess than him and Hays, this was not a get-in-the-water spot.
He started up the next steep incline and any traffic disappeared. He smiled grimly. He might be alone for a while. Checking his watch, he saw it was twelve-twenty-five. Five and a half more hours to find Belinda.
Why did he have this nagging feeling it wasn’t about the contest at all, but something more important? Could this be his chance to reconnect with Belinda? He frowned. They’d tried that, and despite the best kissing session of the century, she was now convinced he was a liar and choosing to believe her fraud of a father over him.
Jagger would be the first one to defend his mom or dad to anyone. He understood family loyalty, especially as an only and beloved child, but Belinda had to listen to reason.
He almost smiled. Belinda wasn’t always reasonable.
What a mess he was in. A scary mess with no solution and no way to fight through it.
